Ballet Fantastique

The world premiere of Remi Wörtmeyer's "La Bohème" marked a seminal moment in the history of BalletMet. The two-act production was unlike any that the 48-year-old Columbus, Ohio-based company has ever staged and showed a marked ascent in its artistic merit. Seldom made into a ballet, Wörtmeyer's reimagining of Italian composer Giacomo Puccini's iconic opera "La Bohème" relocated its setting from nineteenth-century Paris' bohemian Latin Quarter to America's bohemian heartland—the 1920s French Quarter of New Orleans. There, he combined the stage-filling spectacle of a Broadway musical with the dance-as-dialogue approach, and the precision gag humor of a Gene Kelly classic Hollywood movie to create an outstanding theatrical experience.

Performance

BalletMet: "La Bohème" by Remi Wörtmeyer

Place

Davidson Theatre, The Riffe Center, Columbus, OH, May 13, 2026

Words

Steve Sucato

Sophie Miklosovic as Mimi and Miguel Anaya as Rodolfo in Remi Wörtmeyer's “La Bohème.” Photograph by Jennifer Zmuda

Retaining the essence of the opera's story about a group of poor artists and the tragic love story of two of them, Mimi (Sophie Miklosovic) and Rodolfo (Miguel Anaya), former Dutch National Ballet star Wörtmeyer's world-class choreography and BalletMet's dancers' equally first-class performances told “La Bohème’s” tale exquisitely. The production was danced to an orchestral version of Puccini's deeply emotional opera score by Kevin Hocking, performed impeccably live by the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, led by Rossen Milanov.

Act One began with the hustle and bustle of French Quarter residents in preparation for Mardi Gras during a heatwave. Wörtmeyer filled the stage with excited street vendors, costumed entertainers, Café Du Monde workers and patrons, and townspeople and their children in their finery. Everywhere you looked on the stage, a unique story was unfolding, including that of fiery couple, Marcello and his girlfriend Mussetta, part of "La Bohème's" main-character friend group. Marcello, portrayed with charm and machismo by Joan Sebastian Zamora, and Mussetta, danced with playful allure and elegance by Francesca Dugarte, were on the hunt for wealthy men for Mussetta to flirt with, in hopes of receiving expensive gifts.

BalletMet in Remi Wörtmeyer's “La Bohème.” Photograph by Jennifer Zmuda

That scene then shifted as dancers pushed the movable set piece depicting the Café du Monde to the opposite side of the stage and flipped it round to reveal the interior of the shabby atelier of artist friends Rodolfo, Marcello, Colline (Leiland Charles), and Schaunard (Zachary Guthier). Here, Wörtmeyer cleverly blended slapstick humor with athletic dancing as the friends teasingly fought over who would sit in front of an electric fan that Schaunard had brought. Their fun ended after they caused a power outage in the building.

After a brief and humorous encounter with their landlord, who demanded the rent, the friends parted, leaving Rodolfo behind to answer a knock at the door from Mimi, who asked him to light her candle.

In the first of several nods to famous ballet scenes seemingly incorporated into the ballet, it was love at first sight for the pair, à la Romeo and Juliet. A 14-minute pas de deux expressing their love and jubilation ensued. Packed with intricate partnered spins, lifts, and embraces, Anaya and Miklosovic danced the soul-stirring pas de deux with passion and technical prowess.

Infused throughout Miklosovic's brilliant portrayal of Mimi was a recurring cough that flared up when she was under physical and emotional distress. Venturing out into the Mardi Gras festivities that had a butterfly theme (as a metaphor for Mimi's fragile health), Rodolfo and Mimi encountered tarot card reader Josephine (Katelyn Yang), who swooped into the festivities like Sleeping Beauty's Carabosse. In a card reading for Mimi, she warned of her impending death, which filled Mimi with terror.

Francesca Dugarte as Musetta and Joan Sebastian Zamora as Marcello in Remi Wörtmeyer's “La Bohème.” Photograph by Jennifer Zmuda

Act Two opened in the French Quarter in the aftermath of a hurricane. Rodolfo and Mimi meet to rekindle their relationship to no avail. Miklosovic as Mimi, like the mad scene in "Giselle," then launched into a manic, cough-filled solo, dizzily pantomiming her first dance with Rodolfo. Her wide-eyed, distant stare and delicate hand and arm movements, coupled with sweeping, extended-arm motions that sent the shocked townsfolk watching her backpedaling, were both heartbreaking and beautiful. The ballet reached its climax when the dying Mimi was brought back to the atelier, and she and an emotionally devastated Rodolfo reconciled.

Energized by their reconciliation, Mimi rose from her deathbed in delirium to blissfully dance with Rodolfo. Wörtmeyer's inspired choreography whisked the pair into tight embraces, spins, and upside-down overhead lifts of Miklosovic. Her fever-fueled dancing, laced with technically brilliant footwork, arabesques, and backbends, was riveting, as was Anaya's passionate and athletic partnering.

Their brief reunion then ended in a final heartfelt kiss, with Mimi dying in his arms. And as Rodolfo sank to the floor weeping, cradling and rocking Mimi's lifeless body, faint sounds of audience members' tearful reactions could be heard.

Steve Sucato

Steve Sucato is a former dancer turned arts writer/critic living in Cleveland, Ohio. His writing credits include articles and reviews on dance and the arts for the Plain Dealer, Buffalo News, Erie Times-News, Dance Magazine, Pointe, Dance International, and web publications Critical Dance, DanceTabs (London). Steve is chairman emeritus of the Dance Critics Association and the creator of the arts website artsair.art.

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